Paramount GT-1100 Robotic Telescope Mount

More documents

Recommendations

Info

page 38 Paramount User’s Guide Adjusted properly, you can actually make polar alignment adjustments to the ME without significantly loosening the locking knobs (altitude) or screws (azimuth). When using video feedback for making polar alignment adjustments, pick a star near the celestial equator within an hour of the Meridian. Paramount ME Initialization This section describes the steps necessary to initialize the Paramount ME on the first night of operation and on subsequent nights. Tip Discussions related to TPoint modeling, mount initialization, parking, etc., might seem daunting at first. However, these steps are necessary to achieve consistent, accurate pointing from night to night. In turn, accurate pointing allows enhanced functionality such as scripted operation and imaging without the burden of centering objects. Remember, if you wish to simply dead-reckon for an evening without mapping, simply start the telescope and go! The Paramount ME’s pointing accuracy will still exceed most commercially available “go to” telescopes. Southern Hemisphere Operation See Appendix D – Setting Up and Using the Paramount in the Southern Hemisphere on page 73 for detailed instructions about configuring TheSky when operating in the Southern Hemisphere. For the Paramount ME to point accurately from night to night, there are a number of requirements that must be met. The amount of time saved when target objects consistently fall into the field of view warrants the additional steps needed to accomplish this. Once you have been through the entire process a couple of times, Paramount ME initialization will not seem as confusing as it might the first time. Homing The mount is homed at startup so that the mount is initialized in exactly the same position each time it is used. The homing function of the Paramount ME provides many benefits to the CCD imager: · Homing permits soft limits so the mount never crashes into itself, even if an improper · · · star synchronization occurs. Once a mapping run has been completed, it will continue to provide excellent pointing without having to perform a star synchronization. Even if power is lost to the Paramount ME, the homing function can return the telescope to its previous state. When the star synchronization is performed, it is easy to do a quick “reality check” to be sure the time entered in TheSky is reasonable. Once the mount is homed and a TPoint model is present, subsequent sessions only require accurate time to achieve excellent pointing.
Paramount User’s Guide page 39 In the table below, each of the operations that are required for performing an initialization are listed along with the time needed to accomplish the operation. Please note that the time estimates listed for mapping are for an experienced user. The very first time you perform a mapping run might take considerably longer. As you can see, the mapping operation is the most time consuming. The short mapping run is identical to a normal mapping run except that only 6-12 stars are must be mapped. Operation Time required for an experienced user Setting the computer clock 2 minutes Performing a mapping run 20 to 120 minutes (using video) Performing a short mapping run 5 to 15 minutes Homing 0-2 minutes Why is Accurate Time Important? You can achieve very accurate pointing during a single session without having an accurate time base (that is, if the computer’s clock is within of one or two minutes actual time). However, TheSky makes decisions on how to slew to various positions in the sky based on the local time. Objects that are to the East of the Meridian require the telescope to be on the West and vice versa (except in the “below-the-pole” case). Always do a quick “reality check” of the computer’s time by comparing the simulated sky to the night sky! A very accurate time base is required when initializing Paramount ME. TheSky uses the computer time to compute accurate Local Sidereal Time (LST). When a link is established between TheSky and the Paramount ME that has been homed, the LST is used to reestablish the synchronization between the Paramount ME electronic setting circles and the celestial sphere to within a few arcseconds. Being able to simply power-up and start imaging makes each evening more productive. Setting the Computer Clock From TheSky, click Data | Site Information and select the Date and Time tab to access the Time Service function of TheSky. This is the best method for setting the computer’s clock accurately. If you cannot use the “dial-up” Time Service feature of TheSky, you can set the time manually. Remember, each second of time translates to 15 arcseconds of motion near the celestial equator. If the night-to-night time base is not set accurately, pointing will be compromised. The time error will be cause objects to fall a consistent amount in right ascension ahead or behind the target. There are also many web-based programs that accurately set the computer’s clock. Windows XP has an Internet time server as part of the operating system. If you’re using a different OS, we recommend Dimension 4 from Thinking Man Software (www.thinkman.com).
Page 1: Paramount ME User’s Guide Revisio
Page 4 and 5: page 4 Paramount User’s Guide the
Page 6 and 7: page 6 Paramount User’s Guide Tab
Page 8 and 9: page 8 Paramount User’s Guide SAV
Page 10 and 11: page 10 Paramount User’s Guide Th
Page 12 and 13: page 12 Paramount User’s Guide Pa
Page 14 and 15: page 14 Paramount User’s Guide re
Page 16 and 17: page 16 Paramount User’s Guide Mo
Page 18 and 19: page 18 Paramount User’s Guide Th
Page 20 and 21: page 20 Paramount User’s Guide in
Page 22 and 23: page 22 Paramount User’s Guide In
Page 24 and 25: page 24 Paramount User’s Guide ad
Page 26 and 27: page 26 Paramount User’s Guide Le
Page 28 and 29: page 28 Paramount User’s Guide No
Page 30 and 31: page 30 Paramount User’s Guide En
Page 32 and 33: page 32 Paramount User’s Guide kn
Page 34 and 35: page 34 Paramount User’s Guide St
Page 36 and 37: page 36 Paramount User’s Guide 5.
Page 42 and 43: page 42 Paramount User’s Guide Si
Page 44 and 45: page 44 Paramount User’s Guide Fi
Page 46 and 47: page 46 Paramount User’s Guide po
Page 48 and 49: page 48 Paramount User’s Guide ·
Page 50 and 51: page 50 Paramount User’s Guide Up
Page 52 and 53: page 52 Paramount User’s Guide Fo
Page 54 and 55: page 54 Paramount User’s Guide Sy
Page 56 and 57: page 56 Paramount User’s Guide wr
Page 58 and 59: page 58 Paramount User’s Guide Us
Page 60 and 61: page 60 Paramount User’s Guide tr
Page 62 and 63: page 62 Paramount User’s Guide pr
Page 64 and 65: page 64 Paramount User’s Guide Al
Page 68 and 69: page 68 Paramount User’s Guide Pi
Page 70 and 71: page 70 Paramount User’s Guide Gu
Page 72 and 73: page 72 Paramount User’s Guide Wh
Page 74: page 74 Paramount User’s Guide No

Paramount GT-1100 Robotic Telescope Mount

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?